Author: Talia Ogliore

David A. Fike, professor of earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences and director of the environmental studies program and the International Center for Energy, Environment and Sustainability, was installed as the Myron & Sonya Glassberg/Albert & Blanche Greensfelder Distinguished University Professor.

Paul Byrne, associate professor of earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences, is a science collaborator for a prototype aerial robotic balloon, or aerobot, built by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Near Space Corp.

Bruce Carlson, professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, recently won a $980,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to study neuronal plasticity and the evolvability of animal behavior.

Drawn from more than 20 years of observations at Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo, a long-term study led by primatologist Crickette Sanz in Arts & Sciences documented social ties between individual chimpanzees and gorillas that persisted over years and across different contexts.

Pioneering research at Washington University helped people understand the fundamental role of gut microbes in human health and disease. Now a community of local scientists is learning more about the diverse microbial systems that support animals, plants and ecosystems.

Biologist Susanne S. Renner in Arts & Sciences explains why trees might actually be starting to turn red and yellow earlier, not later. Brilliant fall color might become a casualty of a warming world.

Arpita Bose, in Arts & Sciences, attended a White House summit on biotechnology, along with representatives from government and the private sector. In her research at Washington University, Bose harnesses the power of microbes to create new biofuels and bioplastics.

Ari Stern, associate professor of mathematics and statistics in Arts & Sciences, won a $237,648 grant from the National Science Foundation for a project titled “Structure-Preserving Hybrid Finite Element Methods.”

Weedy rice is a closely related cousin of crop rice that aggressively competes with cultivated rice in the field. Scientists from Washington University and the University of Arkansas report that the crop pest has become widely herbicide resistant. The study highlights challenges facing U.S. rice farmers when they battle a weedy enemy that is closely related to a desirable crop plant.

Physicists from Washington University in St. Louis are developing a new experiment as part of NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers Program. Brian Rauch in Arts & Sciences is leading the effort, which will investigate the origins of heavy elements in the universe and has a $20 million cost cap.